1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention relates to the installation of windows and doors. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods for trimming a window or door after it has been installed in a wall that has a thickness that differs from that of the jamb of the window or door.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In modern construction, windows and doors are typically bought as preassembled units. The windows and doors are then installed into rough framed openings that are constructed in the walls of a building. Once the window or door is installed, trim is applied to the wall surrounding the window or door. The trim covers the jamb surrounding the window or door and provides an aesthetically pleasing transition between the construction of the window or door jamb and the wall.
Windows and doors are manufactured with jambs that have a plurality of different thicknesses. In this manner, the thickness of the window or door jamb can be matched to the thickness of the wall in which the window or door is being installed. When the jamb of a window or door matches the thickness of the wall in which it is installed, the jamb of the window or door terminates in the same plane as does the face of the wall. In other words, the jamb of the window or door lays flush with the wall. In such a circumstance, the window or door is very easy to trim. Trim is simply nailed to the frame of the window or door, wherein the trim overlaps both the jamb and the face of the wall surrounding the jamb.
However, the framework within walls are most commonly built from lumber. Lumber used in framing a wall is seldom cut to exacting tolerances. Furthermore, lumber warps, shrinks, and expands after it is cut. Consequently, when a construction crew frames a wall using lumber, the wall is seldom the exact thickness that one would hope it would be. As a result, when window frames and door frames are placed into a wall, it is not uncommon for the wall to terminate in a plane that is different from the jamb of the window or door.
If the jambs of a window or door are thicker than the wall, the jamb can be cut to match the contour of the wall. However, when the thickness of a wall is greater than that of a window jamb or door jamb, wood must be measured, cut and added to the jambs. Alternatively, the wall must be made thinner by shaving or crushing the sheathing used to cover the wall.
A need therefore exists for a simplified system and method of installing trim around a window or a door, align with the wall. This need is met by the present invention as it is described and claimed below.
The present invention is a system and method for installing trim around a window in a construction application where the jambs of the window are not as wide as the wall in which the window is being installed. The is system uses jamb mounting elements attached to the jambs of the window. Trim mounting elements are either attached to the trim or its functional equivalents milled into the wood of the trim. When the trim is mounted to the wall surrounding the window, the jamb mounting elements and the trim mounting elements overlap, thereby eliminating any gaps between the trim and the jambs of the window. By overlapping the jamb mounting elements and the trim mounting elements, these two elements can be adapted to fill in the gaps between the trim and the window jambs across a large range.